Stubborn
by pennie lane
Summary: Based on 1x12 - Landlord When their Landlord accepts Jess' invitation to dinner, both Nick and Jess find themselves in an awkward situation, which neither of them are willing to back down from. T - For language
1. The Landlord

Jess stands in front of Nick, refusing to budge. Looking like a deer caught in the headlights, her stubborn nature gets her into the pickle that most people would not find themselves in. With solid determination, she reaches down and takes off her shoes, and throws them off to the side. "Okay, lets have a threesome…" With a nervous long blink of her wide eyes, she swallows hard, stepping into her room to a deep-lunging Remy, the Apartment 4D landlord.

Nick hangs his head, shocked that Jess will let it go this far. He could walk away now, but there is no way in hell he will leave Jess alone with the man he believes to be a creeper. Slapping his face, as his own form of a 'pep talk', he begrudgingly steps into the room, wondering how the hell he was going to get them out of this mess.

"Alright, so a menage a trios is about the three of us…trios…menaging…fully" Remy explains, with a bemused grin smeared on his face.

"Okay Jess, this is happening….with this guy" Nick points at Remy in disgust, silently pleading with Jess to end this. Jess looks over to Remy, and a level of panic rises in her. _I can't do this. I can't! What are we doing? We have to stop!_ Jess is about to admit that she is wrong, until she sees a look in Nick's eyes. The same smug look he gave he when he told her that he loved watching her be wrong.

"Yep, we are doing this". Jess said, steely. Remy walks up behind Nick, rubbing his hands over his shoulders and through his hair, talking about the removal of clothes. Seeing Nick's look of fear, Jess has no doubt in her mind that Nick will be the first to stop. _You're done Miller._

Remy guides Nick over to Jess and puts their hands together. "Now, you two get us started".

"Me and Jess get this started?" Nick asked which came out more like a statement rather than a question. He flicked his eyes over to Jess to garner her reaction, who looked just as bewildered as he felt. _She won't go through with this. This is Jess, she loves rainbows and sunshine, she will run as soon as it gets serious._

"Us two? Getting it started" Jess nervously ran her hands over Nick's arms, thinking that that was the thing to do. Looking over at Nick, Jess sees that he starts to egg her on as if she couldn't go through with it.

"Just breath each other in" Remy instructs.

"Yeah, let's just relax into the menage" Nick says with an edge of cockiness.

This makes Jess more determined than ever before. _Just pretend that Remy is not in the room, and it's just me and Nick. I can make him fold._ "Okay Nick, I will do this."

Calling her bluff, Nick places his hands on the sides of her face. "Well then, lets do this Jess" Nick starts to lean in. As he is merely millimeters away from Jess' face, he realizes that she is not backing down. _Shit_.

"Do it." Jess whispers, daring him, knowing that because he has a girlfriend, and with Remy being three feet away, there is no way he was going to kiss her.

"Fine" Nick whispers back. _Come on Jess, give up. I'm going to do this. She is not moving. Why isn't she moving? Oh, fuck it._ He gently brushes his lips onto hers. Jess lets out a shocked squeal, with her eyes opened wide at the sensation of Nick's strangely soft lips. Building her courage, she tentatively kisses Nick back, and soon, they deepen the kiss.

"Wow" Remy says in amazement, and with that, Jess is quickly pulled back into reality when she hears that satisfied cheer come from Remy.

"Nick." Jess breaths, as she gently pushes Nick back. He looks at her a little dazed, and very confused.

"That was beautiful, you're both getting very comfortable". Remy starts to unbutton his shirt in preparation.

Jess starts to panic seeing Remy getting excited. She gulps, "I admit that I'm wrong" she whispers as she looks up into Nick's deep brown eyes. Nick nods in understanding and steps back.

"No, Remy…" Nick is soon interrupted by a confused Winston at the door.

"Woah, what is going on in here?" Winston asks, scanning the room, not believing his eyes.

"Alright, I am not ready for a four-way…so…I'm out of this." Remy puts his hands up in defeat.

* * *

Nick, Jess and Winston sit around the dining table, drinking the last of Remy's moonshine. Winston takes a sip, struggling to keep it down. "Mother of mercy, this will definitely get you there!" Nick looks over to Jess, who is doing her best to avoid his gaze. Winston get's up and walks over to the sink, tipping out the remains of his hootch.

Jess speaks, trying to act normal. "Why didn't you tell me that four people couldn't live in this apartment? If we are going to do a shenanigan, I'm fine with doing shenanigans, I love shenanigans! As long as no one gets hurt." She finally looks over at Nick, who quickly turns his head, hoping he didn't get caught staring.

Winston walks over to the kitchen switch turns off the light with a wooden spoon. The light pops, making both Jess and Nick jump. "Okay, just so we are clear, we're gonna have to live with this right?" Nick and Jess answer in unison with a definitive yes. "Good. Because I do not want to walk in and see that man in his draws again. Never again." Winston walks off to his room, leaving Nick and Jess alone.

"Ahh, so…" Jess says, playing with her glass.

"Yeah….so…" Nick retorts, not knowing what to say. He takes a swig of the moonshine, for a bit of dutch courage. "Well, things got a little weird back there."

Jess laughs, feeling a little more at ease now the subject has been breached. "Yes, it got weird! Look, I'm sorry I let things get carried away. I'm known to be stubborn, and I apologize."

"No, I'm stubborn too so I was never going to back down, so thank you for finally admitting you're wrong, I'm kind of feeling a weird ego high, I love being right." Nick winks at her, in all his smugness.

Amused at his cockiness, "Oh it's like that huh? You think just because I said that I was wrong, I actually meant it? I just wanted Remy to leave, so I did what I had to do to make that happen. I, Miller, am right about people generally being good. All Remy wanted was the companionship of two people, it doesn't make him a bad person."

"I don't believe you, Jessica! You are so stubborn!" Nick laughs. "You honestly think that he is a good man? Well, god love ya for being who you are Jess."

Their laughter dies down, as they realize they both absentmindedly moved closer together. Not even an arms length apart, they both look at each other, remembering the feeling of each others lips. The room falls silent as the tension rises. They look intensely at each other, as they both smile. Nick swallows hard as he slides his hand over toward Jess', which is resting next to her glass on the table. As his fingers contacts hers, electricity jolts through his body. _Woah_.

Jess sees Nick's hand inch towards hers. She bites her lower lip as their hands connect. Shivers run down her spine as she looks up towards Nick, who is staring at her lips. _Just kiss him Jess, you know you want to._ Jess turns her hand so that their fingers are entwined. Suddenly, their thoughts are interrupted by Nick's phone, as it loudly vibrates on the table. Nick pulls his hand away, breaking their moment. He takes his phone and looks at the screen to see who is calling.

Nick clears his throat, "It's Julia". He looks up at Jess, who is trying to hide her disappointment.

"Go, take it. It's getting late, I should go to bed." Nick hesitates for a second, then answers his phone as he walks to his room.

"Julia, hi. Yeah, just at home, doing nothing..." And with that, Nick shuts the door to his room, leaving a confused Jess alone at the table.


	2. Valentine's Day

**So, I had a few requests to continue, so I thought I would. Let me know what you think - and if I should keep going. This Chapter is based on the Valentine's Day episode in season 1. Love to know your thoughts! - pennie.**

* * *

Jess slowly opens her eyes, as the morning sun seeps through her windows. Moaning, she turns to her side to look at the clock, 7.02am. _Argh! I don't want to get up_. Jess closes her eyes once more, ignoring the fact that she needs to get up for work. Memories from the previous night start flooding in, starring in particular, one prominent person. Nick Miller. His enticing lips, his alluring manly smell, the roughness of his stubble. Jess lets out an angry sigh as she tries to shake her thoughts. _Stupid Nick Miller_. She rolls out of bed, putting on her glasses and slippers, and walks out of her room to make herself a hot peppermint tea to start the day.

* * *

Dragging her feet across the loft, she looks over to the dining table, where Winston sits talking on the phone with swagger; obviously he is speaking to Shelby. To his right sits a disheveled Nick, flirtatiously whispering into Julia's ear as a pang of jealousy hits Jess. _Crap, she must of come over after I went to bed. Double crap! It's Valentine's Day_. As she walks toward the kitchen, Nick looks over to her and their eyes catch for a brief moment. Keeping her composure, she ignores his glance and continues on her mission for tea.

"Urgh, couples." Schmidt groans as Jess comes up next to him in the kitchen.

"I know right? You know what, why don't we go out looking for some strange? Happy v-day playa!" Jess says, a little louder so that Nick can here. She high-fives Schmidt, hoping to god that he will play along.

"Jess, I don't go out on Valentine's day. It's not a challenge for me…" Schmidt starts to say, but then looking at Jess' big and begging eyes, he couldn't turn her down. "…but, for you Jess, and only this once, I will be your wing-man."

"Good, because I'm feeling twirly, Schmidt. Twirly." Which is not a lie, since her encounter with Nick, she hasn't been able to delete the thought of sex from her mind. The last man she was with, cheated on her and broke her heart; and she has near forgotten what it's like to be with someone new.

"Twirly? What is that? Is that like horny?" Schmidt laughs. "Well fine, Jess but let's go somewhere a little upmarket in West Hollywood so I can have a bit of a challenge."

"Deal." Jess shakes Schmidt's hand, grabs her tea, and confidently strides past Nick to her room, who heard their entire conversation. He hears her door shut, and is lost in thought. _So she is just gonna go out, find some guy just to have sex with? After what she's been through with that douchebag Spencer? God, Jessica! Why does she make me so mad?_

"Hey, what's up?" Julia looks at Nick inquisitively, breaking his train of thought. Nick shifts in his chair, trying to act natural and not like he was just caught thinking about another woman.

"Ah, nothing. I was just thinking about what we are going to do tonight, you know, maybe I can take you out. You know? I mean, we're both not Valentine's Day people, but, like, what if we were for a night? Like opposite day?" Nick scrambles for words as he pushes the thought of Jess out of his head.

"Oh. Okay. Sure, why not?" Julia says, unconvincingly. She awkwardly smiles at him, which he returns.

"Great, I'll meet you at your offices at 8pm. Where are your offices again?" Nick asks, innocently.

"In West Hollywood, so we can go somewhere nearby."

"Sounds perfect." Nick smiles, kissing Julie on the top of her head.

* * *

"So, how much longer are you going to be?" Nick asked, after waiting patiently for 30 minutes to finish up on her work. "I have a reservation for 8.30pm."

"God, I'm so sorry, I will be five minutes." Julia said, not looking up from her computer screen. Nick shrinks back down in the chair opposite her desk, pulling out his phone. Logging onto Facebook, he sees that Schmidt has tagged himself and Jess at the Chateau Marmont, just the place he will be taking Julia. _Why are you doing this to yourself, Miller? You self destructing asshole_. He starts to recall the fateful night, when he took it a step too far with Jess. _"__Do it" breathing on his lips_. He remembers the smell of coconut in her hair, a fragrance that reminded him of a summer day. Jess loved the summer; she loved it when she gets to wear her light dresses, and going to the beach. _Snap out of it Miller!_

"Okay, I'm all finished up, let's go!" Julia states, trying to muster up energy for the evening.

"Let's do this." Nick follows Julia out the door, placing his hand on the small of her back.

* * *

Jess sits at the lounge table across from Schmidt, nervously playing with the straw of her cocktail. "I think this was a bad idea, Schmidt. I mean, it looks like you and I are on a date, so no one will approach me."

"You think I didn't think of that? Trust me, I did. Cecelia is on her way for support." With impeccable timing, Cece walks up to their table, dressed in a red dress that hugged her body in all the right places.

"Hey guys, sorry I'm late" Cece smiles, as she sits down next to Schmidt.

"Cecelia, exquisite as always." Schmidt says, with a flirtatious smile. Jess rolls her eyes at Schmidt, and turns to Cece, leaning forward.

"I thought you were out with Kyle tonight?" Jess says, with concern.

"We broke up. No explanation needed, he was a jerk." Cece states in her signature monotone way. Schmidt tries to hide the joy in his face, as his night has just gone from mediocre to outstanding. His challenge has fallen right into his lap.

"Well, as long as you're okay." Jess said sincerely.

"I'm fine." Cece smiles. "More importantly, you're on the prowl. Are you sure this is a good idea? You're known for emotional attachment."

"Yes, I need this Cece – you have no idea!" Cece, looks at her confused, but Jess continues before Cece could ask what was wrong. "I just want to find a guy, have my fun with him, and kick him to the curb like a piece of sexy meat."

"Look Jess, you just need to find someone you have little in common with. Once you do, you will have a meaningless sex marathon for as long as you want. You will be Joan Beniot of love making." Schmidt explains.

"Well, let's get to work. I'm going to go to the bar, and be on the lookout. Wish me luck!" Jess jumps up from their table, and excitedly hurries toward the bar, hoping that this night will make her forget of Nicholas Miller once and for all.

* * *

"So the Chateau huh? I would think that this is more of a 'Schmidt place' rather than a place you would go." Julie says, with a bemused grin. Nick and Julia sit at a quiet, intimate table, with Nick having the best view of the bar.

"Well, we were going opposites weren't we? That's why I picked here – because this is the absolute last place I would chose to go." Nick laughed, keeping his eyes wondering over the crowd. The waiter comes over to their table to take their orders.

"Well, if this is opposite day, then…" Julia turns to the waiter with a huge smile. "I'll take a whiskey on the rocks, and my date will take a cosmopolitan." Nick is quickly pulled back into reality at hearing the world 'cosmo'.

"What?!" Nick exclaims. "Really, Julia?"

"Relax you big baby, I have a feeling that you might like it." Julia's phone goes off, which she scrambles for. "Sorry, it's a text from China, do you mind?"

"No, not at all, take care of it." Nick said, motioning her to text away. With Julia deep in her phone, Nick takes this opportunity search the crowd. Nick slowly scans the room, and from the corner of his eye, he sees her.

Jess bounds across the room, dressed in a sexy playsuit, with her tiny waist accentuated with a belt. Her hair falls over her shoulders, carefree and tossed, with her beautiful blue eyes piercing through her bangs. _Get it together, Miller_. Nick watches her from afar as she waits patiently to be served. A few men start looking her way, as she plays with her hair. Nick clocks a good looking young man, who looks like a model walking over to Jess and taps her on the shoulder. She turns around, smiles and accepts his handshake. Nick sees her say her name to the guy, as she flicks her hair over her shoulder. _What are you doing Jess, that guy? He looks like he came straight from a tanning salon!_ Jess laughs as the guy turns to point out where he is sitting, which is when she locks eyes with Nick. _Crap_. Nick prepares to be on the receiving end of her 'mad face' which he likes to call it, but what he sees is something different. He sees confusion, but more importantly, he sees desire.

"And a cosmopolitan for you, sir." Nick is snapped back to his reality, with the waiter gently placing his fruity watered down Popsicle drink in front of him.

Julia laughs at Nick's bewildered face. "It kind of suits you Nick, don't look so shocked." Little did Julia know, it wasn't the drink that affected Nick. _I'm so screwed._


End file.
